“So much for the Apple Watch being a niche product,” Matthew Townsend reports for Bloomberg. “Best Buy Co., at least, is convinced that the high-tech gadget has mass appeal… On Tuesday, Best Buy said it would expand distribution of Apple Inc.’s product 10-fold after demand exceeded expectations. The device will be available in 900 stores on Sept. 4 and all 1,047 of Best Buy’s U.S. big-box stores by the end of next month. The chain began offering the watch — offering models for between $349 and $700 — less than three weeks ago on its website and at 100 locations.”
“‘It has performed so well that, together with Apple, we’ve decided to roll it out,’ Best Buy Chief Executive Officer Hubert Joly said in an interview after the chain reported second-quarter earnings,” Townsend reports. “The broader rollout of the watch is part of Best Buy’s plan to give more space to Apple’s products. The retailer has been revamping its 740 Apple departments — known as stores-in-stores — with tech giant’s financial help. Best Buy, which is based in Richfield, Minnesota, expects to have 520 upgraded by the holiday-shopping season.”
“Having the Apple Watch ‘in all 1,000 stores by the end of September is a big deal for us,’ Best Buy Chief Financial Officer Sharon McCollam said on a conference call with analysts,” Townsend reports. “Best Buy also will begin selling AppleCare warranties later this year and will become an authorized service provider for Apple products, testing the offering in 50 stores by the holidays.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Strengthening its ties with Apple makes Best Buy sound like it wants to live up to its name, for a change.
Apple Watch works best when other people with whom you wish to communicate have them, too. That’s when the magic really begins!
So, spread ’em far and wide, Best Buy!
SEE ALSO:
Best Buy CEO: Apple Watch demand is ‘so strong’ that we’re expanding sales to all 1,050 stores – August 25, 2015
The Apple Watch experience: Greater than the sum of its parts – August 20, 2015
Apple Watch owners vastly prefer Apple Watch to iPhone for Apple Pay – August 18, 2015
Apple stock halts slide as Best Buy begins selling Apple Watch in stores and online – August 7, 2015
i think BB has realized, finally, that they tied their wagon to two dead horses in MS and Samdung. Now BB is looking to Apple to save them. BB is going to have to pull off a major blue shirt culture change in order to get this Apple loving person in the doors.
I can’t see that happening. They got a stock market bounce because they reduced their operating expenses by cutting staff and reducing pay. In other words, while before you had clueless sales people, now you’ll have positively ignorant sales people working for minimum wage.
I cringe at the thought that at least half of American population older than 50 still relies on the “expert” advice of a “knowledgeable” sales person…
How is Best Buy going to manage to sell a “flop”? I can’t imagine where they got “strong sales” from because absolutely every other new source said AppleWatch sales were weak to non-existent.
/s
When I called about WATCH availability at my local BB a few weeks ago they said they’d NEVER be getting it – even though it would(will) be the only place in the entire Santa Cruz CA County to buy one in person. I thought it odd that the BB marketing department wouldn’t want to include all stores in the chain where they would in fact be the exclusive outlet for WATCH SPORT and WATCH.😕
The people that answer the phones are probably not very well informed. They will simply check their inventory and if it is not in that then will say it will not be available.
BB is only good for getting cheap deals. The only time I have bought from there recently is after finding they had the cheapest local store price and I wasn’t able to buy online.
Most store employees are short term or part time employees who get minimal training. Cheap but next to useless for getting correct advice.
Oh No! The Genius Bar has devolved into the Geek Squad! Apple is definitely doomed.
My guess is around $14B of Best Buy’s $40B annual revenue are non-Apple computers, tablets and phones. If those non-Apple products were removed from Best Buy’s stores then there would be space to sell the Apple Car. If one million cars were sold from Best Buy then revenue would equal around $30B.
Eliminating non-Apple tablets, computers and phones would further strengthen Apple and jeopardize the Android ecosystem, especially Samsung. It’s possible that half of Samsung’s North American smartphone sales are coming from Best Buy. Additionally, Best Buy would be a perfect fit to sell HomeKit connected appliances and electronics.
Does this mean BB’s employees will finally stop passively-aggressively insulting Apple while directing customers to competing products?